Anthony Ballantoni

Mid-Pack Attack

Mid-Pack: AdvoCare 500

Track history: In 1964, the Phoenix International Raceway was built in the foothills of the Estrella Mountains to accommodate open-wheel racing. The 1-mile oval track has 11-degree banking in Turns 1 and 2 and 9-degree banking in Turns 3 and 4. The 1,179-foot frontstretch and 1,551-foot backstretch have very little banking (less than 9 degrees). In 1988, NASCAR began racing at the Arizona track, hosting the annual fall 312 lap Checker Auto Parts 500.The track is similar to a short track in that the corners are flat, long and sweeping. The cars spend a lot of time in the corners which makes the setups extremely important. The preferred line is at the bottom of the track at the start, but a higher second groove develops during the race.PIR spent $5 million to install 1,044 Musco lighting fixtures and ran its first night-time Cup event and first spring race as well in April 2005.Following the February 27, 2011 Subway Fresh Fit 500, PIR went into a track repaving and restructuring mode. Besides installing a new four-layer asphalt and aggregate surface, the track project included widening the front stretch from 52 to 26 feet, installation of concrete pit stalls, pushing the dog-leg curve between Turn 2 and Turn 3 out 95 feet and the implementation of variable banking to ensure the use of two racing grooves.

November 6, 1988: Geoffrey Bodine put the No. 5 Levi Garrett Chevrolet on the pole for the 1988 Checker 500, led two laps and finished sixth. Ricky Rudd looked to be the winner, leading the most laps (183) but the engine went south in the No. 26 Quaker State Buick dropping him to 26th place. Alan Kulwicki started the No. 7 Zerex Ford 21st in the lineup, led 41 laps including the last, to take the inaugural PIR Cup victory.

Fantasy games won’t allow you to pick all track favorites so Mid-Pack Attack is here to help. A mid-packer may not win the race but has as good a shot at a top 20 finish as track favoritesKyle Busch, Denny Hamlin, Jimmie Johnson and Brad Keselowski. There were 44 cars on the preliminary entry list for this weekend’s Cup race. Here are our picks for Sunday’s AdvoCare 500 in Avondale, Arizona.

Mid-Pack picksTrack favorite Johnson is the only driver who has a better average finish than Mark Martin at Phoenix International Raceway. Johnson averaged a 5.3 finish in 18 starts. Martin’s average finish is a 9.0 but that’s over 31 races. The veteran has not lost his touch at the one-mile track. Since 2009, his average is a 7.8 in seven starts which includes a win and two poles. This past March, Martin finished ninth from the pole. This is another good weekend to include the No. 55 Toyota on your fantasy roster.

Kurt Busch and his new team have improved steadily with finishes of 25th, 15th and eighth in their last three Cup starts. In 19 starts at PIR, Busch has an average start of 13.4 and a 13.5 average finish. Over the last 15 Cup races at Phoenix, he had a third-best average running position of 10.2 and led 521 laps (only track favorite Johnson led more). Busch won the 2005 Subway Fresh Fit 500 and has earned a top-15 in six of his last eight PIR races. The No. 78 Chevrolet driver is worth considering for a fourth or fifth driver on your fantasy roster this week.

In 2007, Joey Logano blew away the competition in the K&N Pro Series West race at Phoenix. He started second, led 73 of the 158 laps and won the race. In seven starts here in the Nationwide Series, he had all top-10 finishes (including an eighth in March 2012). We don’t expect to see him up front since he hasn’t led a single lap in seven Cup starts but he has finished no worse than 11th place in four of his last five trips to one-mile "Jewel of the Desert". Logano is pulling double-duty again this weekend in the NNS and Cup races. Give the No. 20 Toyota a look this weekend for another possible top-15 or better.

Aric Almirola picked up a 12th place finish at the Avondale, Arizona track in March of this year. That was in just his second time piloting the Petty No. 43 Ford. He also started from the pole in one of his five Nationwide Series races at the one-mile oval. If you need a driver capable of a top 20 or better this week, Almirola is your guy. That’s where he’s finished in six of his last eight starts this season. This includes surviving ‘Dega with a 19th place and a fourth at the tough Martinsville paperclip.

Track history: In 1964, the Phoenix International Raceway was built in the foothills of the Estrella Mountains to accommodate open-wheel racing. The 1-mile oval track has 11-degree banking in Turns 1 and 2 and 9-degree banking in Turns 3 and 4. The 1,179-foot frontstretch and 1,551-foot backstretch have very little banking (less than 9 degrees). In 1988, NASCAR began racing at the Arizona track, hosting the annual fall 312 lap Checker Auto Parts 500.The track is similar to a short track in that the corners are flat, long and sweeping. The cars spend a lot of time in the corners which makes the setups extremely important. The preferred line is at the bottom of the track at the start, but a higher second groove develops during the race.PIR spent $5 million to install 1,044 Musco lighting fixtures and ran its first night-time Cup event and first spring race as well in April 2005.Following the February 27, 2011 Subway Fresh Fit 500, PIR went into a track repaving and restructuring mode. Besides installing a new four-layer asphalt and aggregate surface, the track project included widening the front stretch from 52 to 26 feet, installation of concrete pit stalls, pushing the dog-leg curve between Turn 2 and Turn 3 out 95 feet and the implementation of variable banking to ensure the use of two racing grooves.

November 6, 1988: Geoffrey Bodine put the No. 5 Levi Garrett Chevrolet on the pole for the 1988 Checker 500, led two laps and finished sixth. Ricky Rudd looked to be the winner, leading the most laps (183) but the engine went south in the No. 26 Quaker State Buick dropping him to 26th place. Alan Kulwicki started the No. 7 Zerex Ford 21st in the lineup, led 41 laps including the last, to take the inaugural PIR Cup victory.

Fantasy games won’t allow you to pick all track favorites so Mid-Pack Attack is here to help. A mid-packer may not win the race but has as good a shot at a top 20 finish as track favoritesKyle Busch, Denny Hamlin, Jimmie Johnson and Brad Keselowski. There were 44 cars on the preliminary entry list for this weekend’s Cup race. Here are our picks for Sunday’s AdvoCare 500 in Avondale, Arizona.

Mid-Pack picksTrack favorite Johnson is the only driver who has a better average finish than Mark Martin at Phoenix International Raceway. Johnson averaged a 5.3 finish in 18 starts. Martin’s average finish is a 9.0 but that’s over 31 races. The veteran has not lost his touch at the one-mile track. Since 2009, his average is a 7.8 in seven starts which includes a win and two poles. This past March, Martin finished ninth from the pole. This is another good weekend to include the No. 55 Toyota on your fantasy roster.

Kurt Busch and his new team have improved steadily with finishes of 25th, 15th and eighth in their last three Cup starts. In 19 starts at PIR, Busch has an average start of 13.4 and a 13.5 average finish. Over the last 15 Cup races at Phoenix, he had a third-best average running position of 10.2 and led 521 laps (only track favorite Johnson led more). Busch won the 2005 Subway Fresh Fit 500 and has earned a top-15 in six of his last eight PIR races. The No. 78 Chevrolet driver is worth considering for a fourth or fifth driver on your fantasy roster this week.

In 2007, Joey Logano blew away the competition in the K&N Pro Series West race at Phoenix. He started second, led 73 of the 158 laps and won the race. In seven starts here in the Nationwide Series, he had all top-10 finishes (including an eighth in March 2012). We don’t expect to see him up front since he hasn’t led a single lap in seven Cup starts but he has finished no worse than 11th place in four of his last five trips to one-mile "Jewel of the Desert". Logano is pulling double-duty again this weekend in the NNS and Cup races. Give the No. 20 Toyota a look this weekend for another possible top-15 or better.

Aric Almirola picked up a 12th place finish at the Avondale, Arizona track in March of this year. That was in just his second time piloting the Petty No. 43 Ford. He also started from the pole in one of his five Nationwide Series races at the one-mile oval. If you need a driver capable of a top 20 or better this week, Almirola is your guy. That’s where he’s finished in six of his last eight starts this season. This includes surviving ‘Dega with a 19th place and a fourth at the tough Martinsville paperclip.